Watch: When controversial UFC 267 referee Vyacheslav Kiselev suffered a crushing defeat in his MMA debut

Vyacheslav Kiselev (left), Steven Seagal (right) [Image Courtesy: @slavakiselev0407 on Instagram]

UFC 267 was, for the most part, an exceptional event that produced some of the best fights and spectacles of 2021 so far.

However, the single blot on an otherwise perfect night of mixed martial arts was the officiating in a welterweight bout between Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos and Benoit Saint-Denis.

Despite the fact that Zaleski dos Santos was beating Saint-Denis to within an inch of his life, referee Vyacheslav Kiselev refused to stop the bout. It was clear to see that Saint-Denis was no longer defending himself. The Frenchman's inhuman durability appeared to be all that kept him standing.

#UFC267 Official Scorecard: Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos (@ElizeuCapoeira) vs Benoit Saint-Denis

All Scorecards: ufc.com/news/official-… https://t.co/sewrbkxNzU

Kiselev then angered fans even more when he took a point off Zaleski dos Santos due to the Brazilian inadvertently landing a single groin strike. Kiselev's incompetence even had the UFC commentary booth calling out for the fight to be stopped.

Kiselev was later relieved of his duties for the rest of the night, with veteran UFC referee Marc Goddard stepping in to take his place for the Volkan Oezdemir vs. Magomed Ankalaev clash. It was an incredibly rare occurrence, proving just how seriously the UFC took Kiselev's poor and dangerous officiating.

It later came to light that, like many MMA referees, Kiselev is a former professional fighter himself. According to Tapology, Kiselev competed five times between 1997 and 2003. He lost all five of those contests. He also went by the nickname 'Big Slava'.

MMA journalist Marcel Dorff recently uploaded footage of Kiselev's MMA debut to his Twitter account. Kiselev can be seen facing off against Gilbert Yvel, a heavyweight fighter who later competed in the UFC.

Yvel landed brutal knees to Kiselev in the clinch, forcing his corner to throw in the towel in the first round. Funnily enough, this is exactly what Saint-Denis' corner drew criticism for not doing.

The full video can be seen below:

Here is the complete fight. Didn't upload at first for some reason. https://t.co/fUq1o5QH7T

UFC president Dana White's reaction to Kiselev's refereeing

UFC president Dana White has been vocal about his views on the incompetence of certain referees in the past, with Steve Mazzagatti and Mario Yamasaki particularly coming to mind.

White was asked about the UFC 267 incident during the post-fight press conference.

"We've had lots of incidents with referees. We've removed guys in the middle of cards too. But this was pretty bad. Horrible."

Check out the full post-fight press conference below: